Lexington, Kentucky: Home of the Wildcats of UK. Also home to the 52nd meeting between cross state rivals Indiana and Kentucky. The Hoosiers enter the match down in the all time series 28-23.
The Wildcats came out swinging and the Hoosiers came out rusty. The Wildcats put six points on the board before the Hoosiers could get a shot off and 14 points before the Hoosiers could get a basket.
Turnover after turnover found the Hoosiers down 14-0 only minutes into the game. The first basket came from Tom Pritchard at the 13:33 mark. Half way through the first half, the Hoosiers were trailing the Wildcats by 20.
Scoring evened out a little bit, late in the second half but it didn't matter as the Hoosiers had already given away too much earlier on. With virtually no scoring in the waning minutes of the first half, the turnover count from both teams went skyrocketing. Tom Pritchard played especially sloppy, committing 5 turnovers in the first half (most of which were blocked layups). Pritchard also led the Hoosiers with four of the Hoosiers whopping 13 first half points. Indiana committed 15 turnovers in the first half of the game.
Crean must have had his way with the Hoosiers in the locker room because Indiana came out looking a bit rejuvenated in the second half, scoring six points in three minutes and controlling time of possession. The Hoosiers went on an 8-2 run to begin the half. If they would have came out looking as fresh in the first half, Hoosier fans may have had an actual game to watch.
But, nevertheless, the momentum shifted back to the Wildcats as the Hoosiers couldn't take advantage of any opportunities thrown their way.
Foul shots kept the Hoosiers trailing big early on in the half. The Hoosiers missed several free throws that kept them from making it close.
On the flip side, Tom Pritchard committed 3 fouls in the first part of the second half. He was benched in favor of Kyle Taber at the 10 minute mark. At this point, Kentucky was already in the bonus.
Jodie Meeks and Patrick Patterson led the scoring attack for the Wildcats as they continued to hammer the Hoosier defense (or lack there of) throughout the second half.
Points of light:
- The Hoosiers were taking chances, driving to the hole and getting fouled. Although they didn't exchange those fouls for points, the effort was there and the mentality seemed to have set in.
- The Hoosiers created open looks from three-point range. Also, missed opportunities here cost the Hoosiers several points, but they were getting open looks.
- The Hoosiers held the Wildcats to 72 points. Late fouls made the point total higher than the score actually was. But, in a hostile environment in Lexington, the Hoosiers played alright defensively. It was their offense that lacked.
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